Effective immediately, please read.

[AlterEgo]

Effective immediately, we’re cracking down on foreign politics posts.

Anyone making a post that refers to American, Canadian, British, etc., politics gets a ban for 30 days. No more snide referrals, liberal, conservative, Trump, Biden, Trudeau, etc. Unless it is DIRECTLY related to DR (air transport, immigration, tourism, etc).

And while I’m at it, let’s cut back on the personal attacks on each other. We’re ALL entitled to our opinions without someone saying we’re stupid, a moron, a fool, idiotic, etc. Grow up.

 

[DR Solar]

What about the disinformation, twisting and laying campaigns on here?

 

[DR Solar]

I'm sorry. I've respected you for over ..20 years? But you and DR1 have been way off and not made a stand on our current situation.
MAKE YOUR POSITION CLEAR!
Threatening people without a clear position is worthless.

 

[AlterEgo]

I'm sorry. I've respected you for over ..20 years? But you and DR1 have been way off and not made a stand on our current situation.
MAKE YOUR POSITION CLEAR!
Threatening people without a clear position is worthless.

How much clearer do you want it?

NO FOREIGN POLITICS.

NO PERSONAL ATTACKS.

Don’t like someone’s opinion? Block them, put them on ignore. Constantly arguing with the same person accomplishes nothing. No one is going to change their opinion. It just annoys everyone else.

 

[MiamiDRGuy]

Last resort: F*ck it and leave DR1 for once if you don't like it.

'nuff said

 

[MariaRubia]

How much clearer do you want it?

NO FOREIGN POLITICS.

NO PERSONAL ATTACKS.

Don’t like someone’s opinion? Block them, put them on ignore. Constantly arguing with the same person accomplishes nothing. No one is going to change their opinion. It just annoys everyone else.

Can I also request that if people disagree with something they tone down the way they are saying this. Instead of saying things like other people are talking "total nonsense" and every other post is "completely wrong". We all have different experiences of the country and we all have different sources of information.

 

[Cdn_Gringo]

You can't legislate civility. Everyone's true self eventually emerges from behind the shroud we use to cloak ourselves. Good an decent people are good and decent, bullies are bullies and those with a disposition to be nasty to others are just nasty. The moderators have an impossible job which does not and should not include turning anonymous users into better forum citizens. It takes a lot more effort not to fire off a "nastygram" to someone you disagree with than it does to ignore the bait in the first place.

 

[MariaRubia]

I post on a lot of different forums and to be honest I think that DR1 mods cut people a lot of slack in comparison with other sites. Quite a lot of the old faithfuls have disappeared, it seems to be a smaller and smaller group of people who are posting these days, and I think a lot of that has to do with the fact that when you do post, often you are told "shut up you're wrong" by some posters, and you end up thinking "enough" and not coming back. The nice people don't want to be bullied, so you end up with a room full of bullies.

I think it needs to be enforced that once you've made your point, you can't keep saying it over and over and over again. You can't go off topic at all. You can't bicker. And you can disagree politely but you can't trash other people. I for one would welcome much tougher moderation. No need for bans, just delete any posts that are inappropriate and send a little message, that seems to do the trick on other sites.

 

[keepcoming]

I have been here for a long time. The problem IMO is that no one knows how to "let it go". Everyone has to have the last word, the last argument. Everyone has their own opinion and it should be respected. Want to challenge it? Then be respectful, it is that simple. There is a lot going on in this world right now, ideas/opinions are always welcome/needed. But there is a respectful way to present/answer them.

 

[CristoRey]

.............yup.
I've cut back on posting on here lately as well.
Same folks. Same old baited conversations...
you pick the thread.
One Covid (and all things Covid related) thread
is more than enough in my opinion. Quit talking
politics a long time ago. Rules are rules.

 

[MariaRubia]

keepcoming and CristoRey I completely agree with your posts. The only solution IMO is for the Mods to make sure this happens. You make your point. Someone else disagrees, politely, fine. You can then counter their argument once. But after that, any further posts are just deleted by the mods, and a message sent to say "thanks we've already got your point in post xx". It's happened to me before on flyertalk for example, and you really do learn to think about what you are saying after this happens.

The other thing Mods do on other forums is that they always publicly welcome new posters, and they publicly encourage them to post. We need to hear different voices.

 

[SKY]

Just set a post number limit for a user on any thread. Like say after 3 posts you are done on that thread.. That would stop two or more people that HAVE to have the last say and the clutter it makes.............

 

[Northern Coast Diver]

This is great news for DR1! We were all getting tired of those that just won't let others have their say without constant strife. The mods are busy enough already. Go AE go !!!!!

 

[SKY]

We lost a lot of knowledgeable posters in the past few years, Someone would ask about a question in the DR, a poster with direct knowledge would give a good answer due to personal experience. Then he or she has to defend their post for 2 days against people that automatically take the other side. Many of them not even living here. So good people got fed up and left here.

 

[flyinroom]

They do say that moderating a forum is akin to herding cats.

 

[MariaRubia]

We lost a lot of knowledgeable posters in the past few years, Someone would ask about a question in the DR, a poster with direct knowledge would give a good answer due to personal experience. Then he or she has to defend their post for 2 days against people that automatically take the other side. Many of them not even living here. So good people got fed up and left here.

Well said. I can think of so many people who have gone. A lot of them now post on the Expat forum, but I can't cope with Planner (formerly the Weather Girl on here) who replies to every single post on there.

 

[Gadfly]

rules were meant to be broken i heard before

 

[Africaida]

Well said. I can think of so many people who have gone. A lot of them now post on the Expat forum, but I can't cope with Planner (formerly the Weather Girl on here) who replies to every single post on there.

OMG I am not the only one !

 

[Ken]

I am one of the really old timers. Once was very active, when the board was helping many new comers and others learn about the DR and adjust to life here, You felt like you were making a contribution. That is why I am Platinum.

But when it started to become more like Twitter and other social media I left.

Not too long ago I started missing DR1 and came back to test the water. I find that there are not too many people with questions about the DR or interest in discussing DR matters these days but a lot of people, a great many of whom don't live here, looking for personal entertainment. Now threads go on and on as the same group of posters battle to keep alive, in order to get the last word, on a matter that has long since been ready to be closed by the moderator for lack of new content or general interest.

I am glad to see the moderator recognizes the problems facing DR1 and will be taking appropriate action, or at least it is hoped he will be following through

 

[slowmo]

People need to develop a thicker skin about what is said online here. In a world where you get get vastly different expert opinions about stuff like covid, you can't let yourself get worked up about stuff.

The other day I reported a first hand current airport experience and of course was criticized for getting it all wrong. No big deal as people can believe what they want to believe.